EMPLOYERS

EMPLOYERS - GENERAL GUIDANCE

  • To claim staff furlough costs from HMRC, the business will need a business tax account.
  • All furloughed staff need to be issued with a letter - please click below to download a template letter
  • PAYE due to HMRC will be due as normal; I have not heard anything to the contrary.
  • Pension payments as part of Auto-Enrolment, still have to be paid.
  • HMRC will reimburse 80% of 'furloughed workers' wage costs, up to a cap of £2,500 per month.
    • Furloughed defined as - temporary leave of employees due to special needs of a company or employer, which may be due to economic conditions at the specific employer or in the economy as a whole.
    • The 80% calculation is based on whatever you earned in Feb 2020, irrespective of contracted hours or overtime, your gross pay before tax.
    • Employers do not have to pay over the 80%.
    • It is currently running from 1st March for 3-months but may be extended.
    • Staff will need to be designated as 'furloughed'.
    • Furloughed workers should NOT undertake any work for their employer who has furloughed them.
    • However staff are permitted to obtain a temporary job with a different employer as long as it is not part of the same group.
    • The pay is still subject to NI & TAX.
    • Will it cover Employer NI (ER's) - TBC?
    • Employers are permitted to pay staff more than 80% if they wish.
    • Employers do not have to claim the 80% from HMRC if they don't want to.
    • If employees are asked to reduced hours - you cannot claim the 80% job retention scheme.
    • A company can still decide to close their business and make staff redundant. 
    • Employees with a second job - if with an unconnected employer this will be unaffected.
    • If the employee left their previous job on good terms, employers have asked the previous employer to keep them on during the furlough period; this has shown some success.
  • Sick Pay (SSP) - if paid to employees who are off sick due to Coronavirus.
    • Normally not recoverable from HMRC, will now be recoverable up to 14-days.
    • The normal 3-waiting days is reduced to ZERO; you can claim from day-1.
    • Eligibility
      • All employers with fewer than 250 employees at 28th Feb 2020
      • Employees must complete a questionnaire at NHS online to determine IF THEY ARE REQUIRED TO SELF-ISOLATE & OBTAIN A SELF ISOLATION NOTE.
      • NHS STAY AT HOME ADVICE
      • NHS ONLINE QUESTIONNAIRE
    • How to access - yet to be determined, legislation has to be passed.
  • Employees that self-isolate voluntarily without anyone in their house hold showing symptoms, is regarded as an unauthorised absence & SSP is not available and cannot be furloughed.
  • Employers can close and force employees to have unpaid leave only if it is in their contract - but this should no longer be necessary.
  • If an employee has no contract, unpaid leave is by agreement, if the employee refuses then the employer is liable for their full salary. Obviously, the employer can still recover 80% of their pay.
  • ACAS HAS MORE ADVICE